


I Think My Name is Peter (The Beginning)

by hollyharley



Series: Holly's Whumptober 2020 (Independent works) [3]
Category: Spider-Man (Tom Holland Movies)
Genre: Acute stress disorder, Adopted Peter Parker, Angst with a Happy Ending, CPTSD, Gen, Hurt Peter Parker, Pepper Potts Acting as Peter Parker's Parental Figure, Peter Parker has PTSD, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Protective Pepper Potts, Protective Tony Stark, Tony Stark Acting as Peter Parker's Parental Figure, Tony Stark Needs a Hug, Trauma
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-01
Updated: 2020-12-31
Packaged: 2021-03-08 17:22:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,882
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27270391
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hollyharley/pseuds/hollyharley
Summary: Peter Parker is kidnapped at the age of five. For years, he is experimented on by "the man."That is, until he escapes and finds Tony Stark.(content warnings and word count @ the beginning of each chapter)
Relationships: Peter Parker & Pepper Potts & Tony Stark, Peter Parker & Tony Stark
Series: Holly's Whumptober 2020 (Independent works) [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1980866
Comments: 10
Kudos: 109





	1. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ik it's confusing at the beginning but these people aren't OC's. the summary still stands. the irondad/stark and peter interaction picks up next chapter btw! Thanks for reading!!
> 
> Word count: 2233
> 
>  **content warning:**  
>  kidnapping, experimentation, cages, objectification, being strapped down (not nsfw), needles, surgery mention, scars from surgery mention, lab coats, peanut butter

prompt:

No 4. RUNNING OUT OF TIME  
Caged ~~| Buried Alive | Collapsed Building~~

* * *

The boy didn't know what his name was. The man called him #2.

#2 didn't remember much about his life Before. The only clear memory he had was of being in a bed, clutching a blue blanket. There was a woman singing a song to him; a man kissing his forehead. 

Then he was here. 

#2 was not the only child who had lived with the man. When he first got here, he had seen #1 in his cage. He tried to remember what happened to #1, but instead of memory, there was a blank space. One day #1 was there, and the next he was gone. There were a lot of blanks in his memory, but he assumed that was normal. He had no model for what was normal. 

All he knew to be true existed in this room: his cage, the man, and the experiment table.

#2’s favorite time of day was when the light was on. The man said it was for his vitamin D, but #2 just liked it because that was when the man left the house. #2 had never been upstairs, but he knew it existed. This was because he would see the man go up the stairs and then hear footsteps coming from above him. After the man turned on the light, he would give #2 food and leave. There would be no footsteps coming from upstairs after a few minutes, then #2 would hear a door slam shut.

On the days he went to work, the man wore a white coat, and #2 never ceased to be amazed by how bright the color was compared to his surroundings. That wasn’t to say the man didn’t keep him clean. He had a bucket with a lid for excrement; he was given a change of clothes every day; the man gave him a bath every three days. The bathtub was in the corner. #2 hated baths. The water was always cold, and the man always liked to stare at his naked body and marvel at his “work.” He'd trace the scars he'd caused from his scalpel. It was the closest thing to love #2 was given. 

Today, the man did not come down the stairs wearing a white coat; that meant he wasn't going to work. He wasn’t wearing his scrubs, so he wasn’t doing any tests on #2 either. This calmed #2 down. The tests only happened on Saturdays, but sometimes he forgot how many days had passed. He was pretty sure today was Monday... Suddenly, he had a memory of sitting on a colorful carpet, surrounded by faceless kids, singing, _"Monday! Tuesday! Wednesday!"_

"Hey!" The man banged on his cage, and #2 was startled out of the memory. The man was wearing a black coat and a cloth around his neck. #2 didn't know what it was called, but he was too scared to ask. "Number Two, I'm going to be away for a few days for a seminar."

#2 was sitting in the corner of his cage, on his cot. He looked up at the man, confused. The man always came back at night and turned off the light. It was consistent. It was a schedule that #2 lived by. The man frowned. "Stop looking at me that, brat. I haven't been to one in a few years, and we don't want anyone to find us out, do we?"

#2 shook his head. The man said if someone found them out, he'd be killed. #2 didn't like cold baths or the tests, but the instinct to live was stronger than his discomfort.

The man opened the cage door and gave him a jar full of... peanut butter? His food was generally peanut butter and jelly on bread and an apple. The man threw a spoon to him. "I can't make you food while I'm away, and I don't need rats contaminating the place. Make sure you close the lid, all right? And clean the spoon with your water. The last thing I need is a damn infestation." The man turned on the light that shined over #2's cage. "I'll be back in two days."

The man walked up the basement stairs and locked the door. #2 was alone.

He was scared. The man had never been away other than being at work. He started to cry. What if the man forgot about him? What if the Outside found him and hurt him? He had a full water jug, but what if he ran out of water somehow? He didn't like being alone. He was scared, scared, scared. #2 began to cry, which he hated because the man hated. Most of the time he cried when he was on the operating table and the man poked him with needles, and the man would yell at him to _Shut up!_ But right now, he couldn't shut up. He cried and cried and cried until he wore himself out.

He didn't know how long it had been, and since the man wouldn't come to turn off the light, he had no idea if it was day time or night time. All he knew was that he was hungry. He crawled over to where the the man had thrown the jar. 

The boy smiled when he picked up the jar. It was colorful. The lid was yellow. The side was red. On it, a green silhouette of a boy flying surrounded by stars. It was pretty. #2 wished he could fly. Under the boy were the words "Peter Pan Peanut Butter."

_The woman smiled. "I love you, Peter."_

#2 dropped the jar and jumped back. Breathing heavy, the boy checked his surroundings. He was alone. Where had that woman come from? 

It was the same woman from his memory with the blue blanket. 

#2 crawled back to the jar and stared at the picture. He wished he could fly. He could fly up the stairs and into the house and to whatever was after that. If anyone tried to hurt him, he could just float away. _Peter Pan. Peanut Butter. Creamy._ He had asked the man where he had come from, once. The man had ignored him. 

The man said he wanted to give people powers and that #2 was his way to find that out. He said #2 was changing the world, and changing the world took time. But the man was close, he said. To what, the boy didn't know. All he knew was that needles hurt, and when the man did surgery on him, he woke up in blinding pain. He didn't feel like he was doing anything for the world. He only felt pain. But he wouldn't dare not to comply.

He got in his cot and slowly opened the lid of the jar. He dug the spoon into the peanut butter and took a bite. Was the woman real? He felt like she was real. He wanted her to be real.

He wanted his name to be Peter.

* * *

The man came back. He took the jar and the spoon. Filled up the water jug. The man seemed happy. He whistled when he gave #2 a bath. He smiled when he looked at the scars on the child's body. "We're almost there!" The days past. The man went to work. #2 stayed in the cage. Everything was normal.

On Saturday, the man came down in his scrubs.

He opened the cage door and picked up #2. The boy knew what was coming. "Please don't," he whispered.

"Shush!" said the man. "You're making history!" The man laid him on the operating table and strapped him down. "I'll be right back!" The man giddily went up the stairs. A minute later, he came back with a large needle, filled with a liquid. "This is it, Number Two! After so much trial and error! I think this is it!" 

The man pushed the boy's head to the side and stuck the needle in.

For a minute, there was only quiet. #2 stared at the wall, happy not to be facing the man. He was tired. He wished that woman was here, singing to him. 

Suddenly, there was pain.

SO 

MUCH

HURT

He screamed out, begging the man to stop it. Nothing had never hurt this bad before. His blood was on fire. Every heart beat sent searing pain through his body. He thrashed against the restraints. 

Then there was only darkness.

* * *

When he woke up, the man was checking his pulse with a stethoscope. The man sighed when he saw #2 was awake. "It didn't work." The man threw his stethoscope to the wall. "It didn't fucking WORK! You're _useless_!" He kicked the operating table. The boy jumped in surprise.

He clung the wall. The straps were ripped and had fallen to the floor. In amazement, the boy turned to see the man's mouth in the shape of an O. He smiled and held out his hands. "Come on, Number Two. Come here."

Anger rippled through the boy. "Where did I come from?"

The man scowled. "Come down, Number Two."

He didn't come down. He scurried towards the door. The boy pushed, and it fell off its hinges. He ran through the doorway, ignoring the man's yelling from behind him. He saw another door and barreled through it.

Outside was beautiful. There was... grass. He knew that was called grass. And the sky and flowers and clouds. 

"Number Two!"

#2 scurried away as fast as he could. He could hear the man's calls for him, but they soon became distant as the boy continued to run away. He was surrounded by woods, but he navigated around any obstructions easily. He felt like he was flying. He was Peter Pan!

He didn't have a destination in mind; he just knew he had to get away from the man. But soon, doubt began to engulf him. What was he doing? What if the outsiders caught him and hurt him? What if-

Up ahead, a building materialized. There was two figures walking on the grounds, and #2 quickly hid behind a tree. A woman and a man. People the man- the mean man- said would kill him. Behind the boy, the man yelled for him. "Two! Come here!" 

If the man found him, he would never be free. 

Would he kill him? 

He watched the couple. The woman had red hair like the woman in his memories did. The man touched the small of her back. Gently. Had he been lied to? Were these people kind? Could they help him find the people who loved him?

"Number Two!"

Without letting himself think any more of it, #2 ran to the couple. "Help!" He crashed into them, and man held his shoulders. 

"What's wrong, kid?" 

The woman kneeled down to face him. "Are you all right? Where are your parents?"

The boy couldn't answer. The woman looked up at the man. "Tony, I think something's wrong. Look at the bruise." She indicated at the spot where the needle had poked him, on his neck. 

Out from the woods, closer now, they heard the sound of the boy's captor. "Number Two, come here!" The boy flinched. Tony's face hardened. 

"Is that the person who hurt you?"

The boy managed to nod. "Don't worry," Tony said. "I'll find him."

Tony's fist curled. "Take him inside."

A red piece of metal came flying and clamped onto the Tony's hand. Another piece onto his foot. Soon, he was wearing a metal suit, and the woman was leading the boy back towards the building. As they went through the door, the boy saw Tony fly into the woods.

He didn't remember much, but he was pretty sure not all people on the outside had _that._

The woman- who introduced herself as Pepper- didn't ask him anymore questions. She explained said there'd be some people, and she promised they would go straight to a private office. What he didn't expect was for all of them to be wearing white coats- ones identical to the ones the man wore. The boy hunched down to avoid their gaze. He was relieved when they got to the empty room. Pepper locked the door and gave him a cup of water. "It's okay now. Tony's taking care of it."

After a minute, there was a knock on the door. "It's me." Pepper unlocked the door, and the boy saw Tony, hovering two inches above the ground, holding the collar of his captor. 

"Is this the man who hurt you?" 

The man shouted in protest, but Tony ignored him. Pepper put a hand on the boy's arm to support his shaking figure. "Y- yes."

With one swift punch, Tony knocked the man out cold. "Fucking asshole." He threw the man to the floor and shook his head. "JARVIS, call the police."

He got out of the suit and kneeled in front of the boy. "I promise he can't hurt you anymore, kid." He chuckled. "Not on my watch... Are you going to tell me your name now, kid, or should I keep calling you 'kid'?"

The boy swallowed. He glanced at the man's unconscious figure, then at Tony's face. In the years that he had been in the cage, the only time he could remember the man smiling was when the boy had been in pain.

"I think my name is Peter."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> not a lot of irondad in this chapter but it's cominn' whooo 
> 
> thank you for reading!! feel free to comment on anything if you'd like (including grammar mistakes haha)!!
> 
> also tony stark pov next chapter??


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> word count: 1634
> 
> content warning:  
> past kidnapping, hospital mention (beginning), night terrors, past death

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> the timelines wooorrrkss
> 
> ik this took forever. i'm sorry

Tony kept the boy. 

It took many calls to make that happen. One to the area's police commissioner, one to the state CPS head- to remind her of his company had funded their backpack program-, and one to the governor. After hours of talking to the cops and making several calls, it was finally over. Some exceptions were made, and the boy got to stay with them. Yes, he was abusing his power just a bit, but out of all the reasons he could do that, this didn't seem like a bad one. 

He just couldn't let the kid go anywhere else. God knows where he would be sent. On top of that, he had seen how fast the boy had ran- faster than any normal human could. The detectives had told Tony of the faux lab Dr. Burstein had set up in his basement. This, along with the puncture wound on the boy's neck, made Tony sure there was some Project Cadmus level shit happening. The hospital had found little wrong with the boy: physically, anyways, beyond some deformities due to behind in such a small space all the time. The boy had said little when interviewed, but there was still a risk of someone finding out eventually. He didn't trust anyone with a powered boy. He was Iron Man now. He could... protect him. At least for now.

It had been a rash decision, he knew. But he couldn't back down now.

He also felt guilty, as if the fact that Burstein had been employed by his international company made what Peter went through at least partially his fault. Not that he'd admit that.

For tonight, they stayed in the place Tony and Pepper always stayed at when visiting the Upstate facility: a small bed and breakfast at Lake Saranac. Normally, they would get dinner at the local restaurant then meander on the beach for the rest of the evening. Today, they got to the B&B at 1 AM. They had called the owners, Linda and Sarah, to tell them they'd be late and needed an extra room. Linda handed Tony the room keys and locked the front door. She led them to their rooms, and the three were soon left alone.

The boy had been quiet during the car ride, and his silence didn't change as they unpacked. Peter had nothing to unpack. Luckily, Pepper had thought of stopping at a hospital gift shop to get him some clothes, so he had something to change into. They were all tired, so unsurprisingly, as soon as the boy had changed into his pajamas, he had passed out on his bed. Pepper and Tony shut his door quietly, leaving it unlocked. 

It didn't feel right to lock in the kid. 

Tony was exhausted, and he knew Pepper was too. Before he could ask her if she thought they were making the right move by fostering the boy, she was asleep. He hoped it wasn't a mistake. What did they know of parenting? Fuck, he was too tired to think about it. It would work out. It would be fine. They would find someone to take care of the boy soon, something permanent. It was too much to think about right now; he hadn't slept without it being disrupted by hospital noise for days. He was so goddamn sleep deprived.

Tony had no dreams.

* * *

The next day, they took Peter to his new (temporary) home. 

It was about an half an hour drive to the small airport, and the boy was silent. Tony tried to make jokes while driving the car, but the kid didn't respond. He just stared out the window. 

Before getting on the road, Tony had gotten a call. The boy's DNA had matched in the missing children's database. He had been right- his name was Peter, Peter Parker, and he had no relatives. His parents had died in a plane crash. His uncle and aunt killed in a burglary. Grandparents dead. Everyone dead. He was an orphan. Tony wondered if this is what the boy was thinking of now. He couldn't imagine it. He was generally a cynic, but still... this felt personal. The boy was so small. He had been kidnapped in 2006, and it was now 2009. He had been kept in a cage for three _years_. Tony had been been in captivity for three _months_ and there were still days where he couldn't get out of bed.

Tony couldn't help but feel a connection.

They got to the airport and quickly boarded the jet. For the first hour, Peter stared out the window. He wasn't solemn. He was amazed. He jumped up and down. He whispered, "Pretty clouds! Pretty clouds!" He was acting more like a four year old than an eight year old, but it still made Tony smile. 

Tony chuckled. "Hey, kid, you finally talking?" Peter didn't respond, so Tony poked him on the shoulder. "He-llo?"

The child slowly faced forward, eyes wide. He shrunk into his seat and didn't say another word. Pepper looked over at Tony crossly, and he shrugged, trying to ignore the stab of guilt in his chest.

For the next four hours, the child didn't move or speak. Hell, Tony swore he barely blinked. Barely breathed. When they got off the plane, Tony hoped the child would unfreeze, but he merely he shuffled alone while looking at his feet. At the mansion, he followed Tony obediently until they arrived to the guest room. When Pepper explained the button on the wall that could call Tony or use JARVIS, he merely nodded. The last Tony saw of him, he was sitting on the bed, quietly staring out into nothing.

All because Tony had touched him. 

Pepper said she would call a child psychologist in the morning. Tony thought that was a good idea.

At dinner time, he went to get Peter. The child was sleeping; he looked especially tiny in the king-sized bed. Tony had an unfamiliar urge to... care? The whole "caring about other people" this was still pretty new to him, so it was weird. He had spent the first two decades of his adult life not caring about anyone, not even himself, not really. But especially not other people. And now he couldn't stop himself from gently pulling the blanket over a slumbering eight year old. Was this compassion only there due to the trauma caused by his own captivity? Well, he didn't have a therapist to go ask about it, but Tony suspected it was so. Did this fact change his feelings?

No.

Tony left the room. Pepper and Tony had a quiet dinner, and then Pepper left for her apartment, despite Tony's offer for her to stay. She smiled at his offer, and the edges of her eyes crinkled. It was then he noticed the dark circles under her eyes. "I need some time to myself," she said. She kissed him on the cheek and left. They'd spent so much time together this week, he had nearly forgotten she wasn't always by his side. Normally, he had the mansion to himself minimum between the hours of 11 PM to 7 AM.

Except for tonight. Peter was here. Tony felt the foreign feeling again and stopped working on an improvement for suit. He headed upstairs; he needed to check on Peter. Just to make sure the kid was all right, he guessed. Just to make sure-

He was on the second floor when he heard the screaming. He ran up the flight up stairs, swung out into the hallway, and sprinted to the guest bedroom. He opened the door; his fists were curled. He ready to fight an intruder or a government agent or God know's who. But all he saw was Peter.

Peter having a night terror. 

Tony kneeled next to the bed. "Peter?" The boy thrashed on the bed; he stared at the ceiling, but his eyes were glassy. Tony gently touched his arm. "Peter, it's Tony!" The kid kept on screaming. His arm swung and hit Tony's face. He wasn't waking up, and Tony didn't want to touch him. What was he supposed to do? He didn't know what to do. This wasn't like the nightmares he had. This was different. The kid was terrified. Fuck!

"JARVIS! What am I supposed to do?" Tony yelled frantically.

**"KidsHealth recommends waiting patiently"**

"Seriously?!"

**"Waking him up will make it worse. He should return to sleep within a few minutes."**

Tony wanted to punch a wall. His fists curled. How was he supposed to do this?

At that moment, Peter stopped screaming. Then he stopped moving, and just like that, he settled down and started to sleep. Tony stared at the boy in shock. He forced himself to take in a breath. And then another. And then another. It was okay. The kid was safe.

It was quiet now. Tony hadn't allowed himself to be in a quiet like this since he returned from Afghanistan. But for some reason, he chose to sit down on the floor and breathe. He finally let himself think of Yinsen. 

The next morning, Tony didn't go make pancakes or anything for the kid, but he did order some from the pancake house. He called a child psychologist and left a message. He ordered a book about parenting and another one on child trauma, because if he was going to do this, he really could _not_ fuck it up. He didn't exactly understand why he wanted to keep the kid, but he did. Not just because of the kid's powers anymore, thought that was something they would have to work on. Tony had to admit he was a different person now. And he wasn't going to waste his life away.

Not anymore.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i know the ending didn't allow a lot of interaction between Peter and Tony. i'm thinking of turning this into a longer series, but i wanted to have a conclusion to this fic at least.
> 
> Thanks for reading <3


End file.
